Visit to recycle facility/community- Day with Dr. Laila Iskandar Kamel(May,23)

One person’s trash is another person’s treasure. This proved to be true when we visited Community and Institutional Development Group of Dr. Laila Iskandar Kamel. This non-profit organization takes goods that have been disposed as trash and recycles those that can be reused. As we approached the meeting site, we suddenly were overcome by an odor—soon realizing that we were at a dump site. We traveled down a short road and met Iskandar, who explained the basis of her organization. As we were listening, we observed a group of school-aged children sitting around a round table outside, a teacher leading them in solving puzzles and other developmental games.

As flies buzzed around us, we adjusted to our environment and were enthralled as Iskandar recounted the history of this community. The people who lived here formerly had no employment and lived destitute lives. The recycling industry has turned this previously impoverished community into a business enterprise. To the outside eye, it may still appear that they still live in poverty—trash spills out of every alley and window as you drive down the street. However, this trash is their livelihood. Every ton of trash they receive translates into 7 jobs. They receive 14 tons a trash per day from Cairo.

Inside of the community’s schoolhouse, we witnessed students taking recycled shampoo bottles and preparing them for the recycling process. Iskandar was careful to explain to us that these children are not laborers—they are actually learning math and logic fundamentals as they help in providing for their community. In the schoolhouse there were several stations demonstrating the skills the students learn during the various stages in the process.

We also visited an amazing church in the community which is revered as the holy land among Coptic Christians in Egypt. The church was outdoors and literally carved out of a mountain. I was taken aback by the amazing view, a stark contrast against the trash-filled community we had just left a mere few blocks away. Seating 15,000 people, I imagined this sanctuary filled with people, poor and rich, young and old in fellowship and worship. It truly looked like something that God himself had created, not man.

After we left the church, we visited another part of the community where young women are trained in the craft of sewing and weaving. This business and educational part of the organization was funded by the recycling portion of the organization. Out of one enterprise was born another. The handiwork was impeccable and we had an opportunity to purchase goods in support of this sector of the community.

I left this place feeling not only fortunate for what I have, but also with a respect for those who learn to make something out of nothing. As we left the community, we looked into the faces of the men and women, youth and children and saw no signs of sadness at their circumstances, only smiles, laughter and the waving of hands as we left their precious community and home.

Doing Business in Egypt

American Chamber of Commerce (AmCham)

Today was quite a hectic day for our class. First, we visited the American Chamber of Commerce in Egypt where we met Hanaa El Hilaly, who runs the entrepreneurship and youth program at the Social Fund for Development—and Mohamed El Kalla, co-chair of the education committee and advisor for the United Nations Development Program. El Hilaly began by talking about the Social Fund, which began in 1991 as part of a presidential decree. Egypt was faced with throngs of jobless people and could not cater to the large number of graduates finishing college.

The Social Fund provides a safety net to those who needed help starting their own businesses. In particular, it caters to young entrepreneurs. The program promotes entrepreneurship through school curricula and by providing access to capital. They also provide non-financial services such as free feasibility studies, marketing, training and access to finance. Participants in the program also receive mentoring through business incubators who provide skills development training—a problem because there are many unskilled workers in Egypt who are not able to fill the available skilled jobs.

One area of entrepreneurship that is growing is the use of microloans by women entrepreneurs. These gender-focused loans are comprised of 62% women, who have a default rate of less than 1%. El Hilaly added that women are holding some of the highest positions in the country, serving as judges, board members and governors. The first lady of Egypt is playing an important role in this change.

AmCham executive director Hisham Fahmy gave a summary of the organization’s structure and mission—to promote business between Egypt and the U.S. through awareness, advocacy and services. He also discussed business opportunities for those outside of Egypt, explaining that there are high property taxes which few people pay but no restrictions on repatriation. This explains why when we tour Egypt we notice many newly constructed yet unfinished buildings. People build on the land in order to stake their claim, but if they finish construction they will be subject to property taxes which are nearly 45%.

American University at Cairo

MIS associate professor and director of executive education Dr. Sherif Kamel met with us and talked to us about entrepreneurship in Egypt and the program at AUC. He stated that a whopping 92% of the economy is entrepreneurs. 80% of the students at AUC are second generation business owners. We met two students from the university’s entrepreneurship club, who offered some limited insight into the entrepreneurial activity of students at their institution after graduation.

Dr. Sherif Kamel explained that tourism is one area for growth and opportunity in Egypt. The infrastructure for a strong tourism industry is there, but the people to support it are missing. Many people who visit Egypt do not return, where other areas of the world can rely on the support of repeat visitors.

U.S. Embassy

Christina Sharkley from the Commercial Attache of the U.S. Embassy in Cairo met with us and discuss her views on doing business in Egypt. Her division helps small and medium size businesses find partners and joint ventures, and also helps companies in trouble. Egypt is politically stable for investors and Western products are viewed positively. With and economic growth of 7% per year and a low import tariff of 6.9%, Egypt is ripe for American investors. Promising sectors include oil and gas, power, telecom, consumer goods and non-food franchises. There are also opportunities through large scale housing developments, which we have discussed as an eyesore while traveling throughout the city.

One thing that was reiterated throughout our busy day was the fact that Egypt is a wonderful place for investors to look into. There are multiple industries and few limitations to bring foreign investors here.

 

 

Necessity or Opportunity?(May 20)

Today we visited the pyramids in Memphis and in Giza. It was incredible to view structures that were created by man 4500 years ago. We also visited a carpet school where young people create handwoven Egyptian carpets—painstaking labor which can take up to 3 months to create and then sold.

Aside from the amazing architecture, history and culture that we explored, it was interesting to see entrepreneurs in action at these tourist sites. There were mostly middle-aged and older men aggressively selling their goods, but there were younger boys and girls. There weren’t too many beggars, but they were definitely strong salespeople. As distracting as it was, I tried to comprehend this nature of entrepreneurship and determine if it was necessity entrepreneurship or opportunism. Perhaps it was a little of both.

 

Women in Egypt(May 19)

Before arriving to Egypt, I had developed preconceived notion of the women in the society. This notion was not necessarily incorrect, but slightly skewed based on the articles and other media I had been exposed to. In my mind, I expected to see all of the women veiled and serving in traditional subservient roles. Although that does exist, a more contemporary type of Egyptian woman has emerged in recent years.

For example, during our Monday visit to IBM, we met women who were contemporary (although still conservative) in their mode of dress. They wore stylish business suits and attractive accessories. In addition to the more contemporary form of dress, women are taking more leadership positions in large companies.

During our visit, we met Mona Arishi, the Quality Function Manager of more than 320 employees at the technology development center in Egypt. She explained that work-life balance was achievable even at her leadership level. She has two children and although Sunday is a working day in Egypt, her children are out of school. She manages to work at her country club on Sundays while still providing attention to her children.

Additionally, we met Dina Galal, the government program executive at IBM in Egypt. She was the first communications director in the Egypt office more than 9 years ago and established the Women’s Leadership Council.

Seeing women in powerful roles and viewing them in a corporate environment was enlightening and broadened my horizons on what the Egyptian woman is. There is no single definition or expectation when encountering one, young or old. They are mothers, wives, corporate executives, homemakers, political and religious leaders, and entrepreneurs.

Potential Dubai Oppertunity(May 1)

It's interesting how things fall together in life. This week, I attended a company meeting in Chicago where company associates from all over the globe gathered to discuss various topics, one of which was recruiting, attracting and retaining top talent across the globe.

During one of these presentations, three representatives from our new Dubai office described the culture and business climate in Dubai, which we all learned about during last week's class. When they asked if anyone had visited Dubai, I raised my hand and informed them I would be there in a few short weeks. I offered my own insight and new-found knowldge during this session, which piqued the interest of the presenters.

Well....one thing let to another, and after the presentation they asked for my contact information and indicated that they were seeking additional associates to join them in the Dubai office! I returned from the trip yesterday, and today I received an email from them, copying the head of my division, following up on my interest in Dubai and asking me to stop by and visit them during my stay. They are interested in possibly offering me an assignment. I was hoping that my first expat assignment would be in Latin America, but it looks like things might turn in another direction...